Square butt strip shingles



July 24, 1962 G, A, FASOLD ETAL 3,045,395

SQUARE BUTT STRIP SHINGLES Filed July 17, 1959 3,045,395 SQUARE BUTT STRIP SHINGLES George Arthur Fasold, Mount Healthy, and WaltoirY. Leibrook, Wyoming, Ohio, assignors to The Philip Carey Manufacturing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed July 17, 1959, Ser. No. 827,857 2 Claims. (Cl. Sil- 226) In the manufacture of square butt strip shingles having locking tabs as disclosed in the Abraham PatentsyNos.

2,452,708 and 2,659,322 or the Bordeaux Patent No. 2,801,599, the provision of locking tabs having slits extending horizontally and interlocking slots extending parallel with the slits there is a cons-tant danger, in laying the shingles, in tearing the slits or slots laterally, which either results in mutilating the shingle, which, without a lock tab is ineffective, or in so opening up the slits or slots that a rm interlock is not effected and the wind resistance is correspondingly impaired. Y

lt is the object of our invention to provide a lock tab interlock for square butt shingles wherein the entire outline of the engaging portions of lock tabs and cut-outs in which the tabs are interlocked, is formed of curved surfaces as to which there is no weakened line of tear cleavage. The shape of the lock tab may conveniently be called a French curve.

As a further objective we plan to apply to the under surface of the strip shingles in the area extending widthwise along the line of interlock or to the under surface of the locking tabs, a band of solar heat sensitive adhesive which, after-the roof is laid gradually Warm up so that the adhesive becomes effective to hold down .the shingles in a wind resistant assembly.

A further object is to facilitate the laying of the shingles by providing an interlock free from slits or slots which interlock with much greater facility and with less likelihood of tearing off or damaging the interlocking tabs. It is obvious that it is more likely to weaken the attachment portion of the tabs to the shingles where acute angles and slits are involved than where curved surfaces with no line of weakness are employed.

Our invention relates to granule coated asphalt strip shingles consisting preferably of two units integrally connected in a flat strip although the strip in some cases may consist of more than two units. Such shingles are of the square butt type and the exposure areas present a rectangular pattern or form with the butts of adjacent shingles or unitsof a course spaced apart by vertical cut-outs.

Shingles of this type are very popular in that they give the roof a neat, symmetrical and attractive appearance. They may be easily and quickly laid with the butts securely fastened down. With our improvements a roof of practically hurricane resistance may be provided in which the tendency for the locking tabs to tear off or pull out is minimized. f

The foregoing objects and other objects such as less waste in shingle material in cutting out the shingles and to which reference will be made in the ensuing disclosure we accomplish by that certain combination and arrangement of parts of which we have shown a preferred embodiment.

In the drawing in which our invention is shown:

lFIGURE l is a plan View of a twin square-butt shingle embodying our invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary View showing the precise shape of the interlocking opening.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the precise shape of the locking tabs.

lFIGURE 4 is a plan view of laterally adjacent shingles of the type illustrated in FIGURE 1 with a superposed shingle angularly positioned for the initial locking tab 3,045,395 Patented July 24, 1 962 connection preparatory to the clockwise movement to sequentially engage the second locking tab.'

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the locking tab engagement.

FIGURE 6 is a plan view of a roof with several courses of shingles of our preferred type laid.

FIGURE 7 is a detail view of a modified type of attachment of the-lock tab to the shingle.

The structure selected for illustration is not intended to yserve as a limitation upon the teaching of the invention but is merely illustrative thereof. There may be considerable variations and adaptations of all or part of the teachings depending upon the dictates of commercial practice. The present embodiment comprises a substantially rectangular sheet of asphaltic or composition material 1 of the multiple tab square-butt-type having our improved tabs and interlocking openings.

In the present embodiment the rectangular sheet has two symmetrically disposed square butts 2, 3, of equal width defined by a vertical cut-out 4 of substantial proportions open at thebottom horizontal sheet edge and extending upwardly for at least the exposed areas 2, 3 of the sheets.

The substantially rectangular sheet is irregular in outline by reason of a lateral offset or outwardly extending shoulder 5 which is compensated for by the corresponding indented por-tion 6 on the opposite edge.

Along the butt edges of the shingles there are extended the locking tabs 7, 8. These tabs are spaced apart and centered substantially along the median vertical line of each of the exposure areas 2; 3. The convex exterior lines of `attachment to the base of the exposure areas 2, 3, are curved parabolically as indicated at 9, 101 forming substantially circular tab ends l11, 12. lAs shown in the drawings a modification desirable for some purposes is to have the tab 11 longer than the tab 12 though this is not essential. Tabs of unequal length do not require simultaneous positioning of the lock tabs and permits the tabs corresponding to the tab 1,1 to be interlocked first with the other tabs corresponding to the tab 12 inserted in the cutout extending in from the right shingle edge more simply.

Larger opening makes laying easier. `For the best performance the shingle tabs should be pulled up tight.

The concave interior lines of attachment 'to the base of the exposure areas 2, 3, are substantially circular as indicated at 13, 14, and it should be noted that at the tops of these concave semi-circular cut-outs the cut-outs may extend above the line of the butt end of the shingle as indicated at 15, 16. The semi-circular cut-outs thus interrupt the bottom edge of the shingle butt. The general shape of the locking tabs lmay be described as commencing with the semi-circular cut-out interrupting the bottom edge of the shingle butt merging into a reverse- 1y curved path extending back toward the bottom edge of the shingle and then continuing around in a curved path in the opposite direction until it meets the bottom edge of the shingle butt at a point removed from the semi-circular cut-out. The cut-out areas 15, 16, may be eliminated by the modification shown in FIGURE 7 where the attachment is by means of straight lines 15a-16a. y

The openings for receiving the locking tabs are formed with cut-out curving top lines 17, 18, which are extensions of the vertical extending side wall of the cut-outs 4. These concave lines 17, 18 extend above the top ends of the cut-outs 4 and are formed withl semi-circular cutout areas 19, 20, at the ends of the openings. These semi-circular cut-out areas extend below the line of the tops of the cut-outs 4 and then level olf into straight lines 21, 22 which extend back to the tops of the cutouts 4. The openings defined above may be described as having an inverted J shape.

In laying the shingles the first row is laid and spaced shingle nails are applied to the upper areas of the shingles which are to be covered over -by overlying layers. Then manually the roofer bends up the tips of the shingles on the inside top of the cut-outs 4. The tabs 11, l2 of the overlying course are inserted into the openings 23 and the shingles snugly tted together as shown in FIGURE 5 with the curved inner edges of the circular cut-outs 13, 14 bearing against the curved upper walls 17, 18 of the openings 23. Thus there is no tendency in any of the interlocking parts to tear along any weakened line of tear cleavage.

In testing our new shingles for wind resistance even if there is any tendency of an upper course of shingles to lift the snugness of the interlock of the lock tabs may shift upwardly there -is still the frictional bearing of curved surfaces against curved surfaces and the shingle parts are not weakened by tearing. In our wind test apparatus which is similar to the apparatus used by Underwriters Laboratories Incorporated at Northbrook, lll., and tested according to its standard procedure, a roof laid with our new shingles withstood wind velocity of 75 mile per hour, the limit of the testing apparatus which we employ.

The application of adhesive normally non-adherent but rendered adhesive by solar radiation may be applied to the under surfaces of the shingle tabs or along a line corresponding to the tab openings along the lines of interlock. In the latter case the application will be on the back surface of the shingles adjacent the cut-out openings 23.

We may as a modification, apply adhesive to the granule side above the cut-out openings 23 and apply a release agent to the back of the shingle to keep the shingles from sticking in the bundle.

We do not Wish to be li-mited to the precise details of the construction set forth, but desire to avail ourselves of such variations and modifications as come within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. An interlocking square butt strip shingle adapted to be laid in courses with like strip shingles with the lower end portions of each strip shingle exposed while the upper portions are covered by exposed portions of overlying courses to provide a double coverage roof covering in which the butts of the strip shingles of successive courses are staggered, said shingle comprising a substantially rectangular strip of diexible, waterproof material having at least one intermediate recess extending substantially perpendicularly from the bottom edge through the lower portion to divide the strip shingle into laterally spaced depending butt units and having a recess of the same length and width as said intermediate recess along one side edge of the shingle so that when the shingles are applied to the roof adjacent butt units in each course will be separated by a recess, each butt unit having a locking tab depending medially from the bottom edge of the respective butt unit, said tab having the shape of a hook devoid of any angular parts forming weakened lines of tear cleavage and said tab having a semi-circular cut-out interrupting the bottom edge of the shingle butt, said semi-circular cut-out merging into a reversely curved path extending back toward the bottom edge of the shingle and then continuing around in a curved path in the opposite direction until it meets the bottom edge of the shingle butt at a point removed from said semi-circular cutout and each shingle having a first cut-out opening at the top of the intermediate recess which with said intermediate recess forms an inverted J and a second cut-out opening at the other side edge of the shingle similar to said first cut-out opening and positioned relative to the bottom edge to form an inverted J in cooperation With an adjacent shingle, said cut-out openings cooperating with the semi-circular cut-outs of the hook shaped locking tabs in interlocking hooked engagement when the shingles are assembled on a roof.

2. A strip shingle according to claim 1, wherein said first and second cut-out openings terminate in a semicircular cut-out.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,939,004 Fischer Dec. 12, 1933 2,139,015 Hamlin Dec. 6, 1938 2,659,322 Abraham NOV. 17, 1953 2,884,878 Abraham May 5, 1959 

